Rising waters threaten Rift Valley communities, NDMA and NDOC tell Parliament committee

A section of Lake Nakuru National Park: after rising lake waters submerged parts of the road network, disrupting access within the park. [Kipsang Joseph, Standard]

Kenya's National Drought Management Authority (NDMA) and the National Disaster Operations Centre (NDOC) have submitted a detailed brief to Parliament's Departmental Committee on Environment, Forestry and Mining, warning that rising water levels in several of the country's Rift Valley lakes are displacing communities, destroying livelihoods and straining public infrastructure across affected counties.

The submission, presented by NDMA Chief Executive Officer Hared Hassan, Simion Onywere, associate professor at Kenyatta University and a researcher, together with the director of the National Disaster Operations Centre, David Samoei, forms part of a broader parliamentary inquiry into the phenomenon and its consequences for communities, infrastructure and the environment.